Police officer shot dead in Gauteng

A police constable from Protea Glen police station was shot and wounded while conducting a routine vehicle check in Protea Glen, Soweto.

At approximately 02:00 this morning two members of the Protea Glen police station ordered a driver of a sedan to stop at Impala Road close to the N12 on-ramp in Protea Glen, Soweto.

As they were approaching the sedan, unknown occupants travelling in a blue light delivery vehicle fired shots at the police officers and fled.

A constable sustained wounds to his lower abdomen and legs. The second member escaped unscathed. The wounded member is currently in hospital in a stable condition.

The National Commissioner of Police, General Khehla John Sitole has wished the wounded member a speedy recovery and has also directed that the 72-hour Activation Plan is implemented to speedily identify and arrest those responsible.

A week ago the SAPS management came together at the Union Buildings in Pretoria to commemorate the murder of 29 police officers in the line of duty where the Minister of Police pronounced that attacks on police will be treated even more seriously in future with such perpetrators “never seeing the light of day again”. Just last week a cop killer was sentenced to life imprisonment in the Northern Cape Province. Despite this, attacks on police continue unabated.

The motive for the shooting this morning has not been established, and no arrests have yet been made.